Say No on Prop 8; Say Yes to Valet Hustle From Factory Games

SAN FRANCISCO, CA -- (Marketwire) -- 02/23/10 -- Where else but in San Francisco can the release of a hot new iPhone game be destined to become a cause célèbre for the gay and lesbian rights movement. Valet Hustle (www.valethustle.com), the debut iPhone game from Factory Games, is an action puzzle game that blends fun and addictive play with an edgy backstory that features both gay and lesbian protagonists.

"It's about time that videogames become more inclusive and add some digital diversity," comments Jesse Archer, Columnist for Out Magazine. "I applaud Factory Games for making the first move towards that diversity with Valet Hustle and being willing to tackle an issue that is very close to the hearts of many people in both the gay and lesbian communities."

"With Valet Hustle, we set out to not only create a game that is an absolute blast to play with incredible visuals and top notch audio, but we also wanted to make a social statement that gays and lesbians should have the same marital rights as heterosexuals," comments Andrew Littlefield, Co-Founder and CEO of Factory Games. "Our inspiration for the backstory came from my good friend, Lulu Magdangal, a successful salon owner in San Francisco who surprisingly just happens to be a lesbian. With Lulu's help, we developed our unique, rags-to-riches backstory for Valet Hustle with a vastly different perspective from traditional videogames."

The Ultimate Parking Game

On one hand, Valet Hustle is a spectacular, Anime-styled, 3D, action puzzle game with a relatively simple premise: park cars, pickup customers and solve puzzles against a backdrop of increasingly impatient but wealthy car owners outside high-end nightclubs and restaurants. What sets it apart from others games, however, is the choice of characters that are in the game.

The Back Story: A Matter of Choice

Depending on one's personal preference, players can assume the role of either Ren or Akira, the young female or male offspring of a wealthy Japanese businessman. Both of these characters were expelled from boarding school for breaking the rules... they openly kissed a fellow student of the same sex.

Though proud of who they are, both Ren and Akira are forced to bow to family pressure and take over one of their father's businesses -- a parking valet company that services high-end nightclubs and restaurants. Though mentally and emotionally up to the business challenge, Ren's or Akira's success ultimately is determined by the players of Valet Hustle.

As players advance through levels, they learn more about Ren and Akira, whose personal lives are also on the upswing as they from move Tokyo to New York.

"It's cool to have been involved in the creation of Ren and Akira, two characters who triumph over prejudice by simply being themselves," comments Lulu Magdangal, story development consultant on Valet Hustle. "I can only hope that Valet Hustle is the start of a trend and more game companies embrace both the gay and lesbian communities."

Putting Money Where The Heart Is

To further show their support for equal rights for gays and lesbians, Factory Games will donate a portion of the proceeds from the sale of Valet Hustle to the Human Rights Campaign.

Based in San Francisco, Factory Games (www.factory-games.com) was founded in early 2009 by serial entrepreneur Andrew Littlefield and professional geek Eli Delventhal, who developed the company around three underlying principles: 1) Produce enjoyable videogames; 2) Expand the range of stories and characters that are associated with videogames, and 3) Give back to the communities from which we have drawn inspiration.